MARKETWIRE ALERTS

MARKETWIRE ALERTS 

MarketWire Afternoon News May 19th:

Updated at 5:00 PM ET 

HEADLINES:

— LA Jet Basis Drops 35cts on Eased Supply Fears

— Midwest ULSD Basis Extends Strength on Pipeline Jam

— API: Crude Stocks Off By 9.1M Bbl; Products Down Too

— Enterprise Mont Belvieu Complex Reports Flare Event

— EIA: U.S. Retail Gasoline Falls 1ct on Week

— EIA: U.S. Diesel Down 4.3cts on Week at $5.596 Gallon

NEWS:

LA Jet Basis Drops 35cts on Eased Supply Fears

Los Angeles jet fuel basis values dropped on Tuesday (5/19), marking a sharp reversal from the historic highs recorded in April as immediate supply fears eased and demand side support softened. 

Prompt Los Angeles jet fuel basis traded Tuesday at a 20cts discount to June NYMEX ULSD futures, down 35cts from where it was last assessed Monday at a 15cts premium.
The latest move extends a steep correction from the record $1 gallon premium reached in mid-April, when refinery outages, tighter crude supply linked to the Iran war and reduced West Coast refining capacity triggered an unprecedented rally in the market.

At the height of the rally during the week ending April 17, Los Angeles jet fuel surged by 57cts overall, including a 32cts jump in one session followed by another 15cts increase the next day. The differential eventually broke into triple-digit territory for the first time on record, peaking at a $1 premium above NYMEX ULSD futures.

The weakening in Los Angeles jet fuel basis occurs despite the Energy Information Administration reporting a draw of that product last week.

Jet fuel stocks in the West Coast fell by 400,000 bbl to 10.6 million bbl during the week ended May 8, and were unchanged from a year ago, the agency said. 

Midwest ULSD Basis Extends Strength on Pipeline Jam

Midwest ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) basis values extended their strength Tuesday (5/18) as traders continued to adjust to intensifying refinery constraints across the region.

ULSD basis at the Buckeye Storage Complex and the Wolverine Pipeline rose by 35cts gallon to reach a premium of 75cts against the front-month ULSD contract on NYMEX, June. The ULSD basis for Chicago climbed 25cts to trade at 65cts gallon over the futures benchmark.

Midwest ULSD premiums have risen sharply this week as traders respond to a multi-layered refining crunch that has gripped the PADD 2 region. A United Steelworkers lockout at BP’s 440,000 bpd Whiting refinery has limited the facility’s production flexibility. Turnarounds at Phillips 66’s 356,000 bpd Wood River refinery and Marathon Petroleum’s 253,000 bpd Robinson facility have also curtailed processing capacity.

The tightening Midwest cash market for ULSD comes amid federal data showing PADD 2 distillate inventories dropping by 700,000 bbl to a lean 24.2 million bbl during the week ended May 8.

In the opposite direction, Group 3 ULSD basis weakened this week, sliding 13cts on the day to a discount of 20cts gallon against June NYMEX ULSD. The narrower spread is driven by a relatively steady supply-demand balance, according to traders.

API: Crude Stocks Off By 9.1M Bbl; Products Down Too

The American Petroleum Institute (API) cited a 9.1-million bbl decline in commercial crude stocks for the week ended May 15, the fourth such weekly drop in a row, energy market participants who saw the data told DTN on Tuesday (5/19).

The Cushing, Oklahoma delivery point for NYMEX WTI futures saw a 1.4-milllion slide in stockpiles for the profiled week, adding to the prior week’s 1.75-milllion bbbl drop.

Distillate fuel supply fell by 1 million bbl, deepening the prior decline of 319,000 bbl.

Gasoline inventories slipped by 5.8 million bbl, after a prior slide of 502,000 bbl.

Enterprise Mont Belvieu Complex Reports Flare Event

Enterprise reported Monday (5/19) a 16-hour flaring event at the BEF Oleflex unit of its 1.2 million bpd Mont Belvieu Complex in Mont Belvieu, a filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said.

The event began at 3:30 p.m. CT Monday (5/18) and ended at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday (5/19), the filing said.

According to the filing, the BEF Oleflex Unit experienced an upset related to reactor effluent driers that overloaded the system with liquid, requiring venting process streams to the North Plant flare to prevent a complete unit shutdown.

Estimated emissions included approximately 5,000 pounds of isobutane, 3,000 pounds of isobutylene, 1,000 pounds of carbon monoxide, 500 pounds of nitrogen oxides, 400 pounds of propane, 100 pounds of butane, and 50 pounds of propylene.

The company said it utilized engineering procedures and maintained flare operations to ensure hydrocarbons were properly combusted. Enterprise added that liquid was cleared, and the unit returned to stable operating conditions.

The Mont Belvieu complex is among the largest natural gas liquids fractionation hubs in North America and serves as a major center for NGL processing, storage, and distribution.

Enterprise did not immediately respond to DTN’s request for additional details. 

EIA: U.S. Retail Gasoline Falls 1ct on Week

The national average for retail regular gasoline edged lower in the week ended May 18, with mixed movements across major regions, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed Tuesday (5/19).

The U.S. average for regular gasoline slipped by 1ct to $4.490 gallon last week, standing $1.317 higher compared to the same week last year, the EIA’s weekly update on fuel pricing showed.
East Coast (PADD 1) gasoline fell by 3.1cts to $4.305 gallon in the week ended May 18, while standing $1.315 higher than in the same period last year.

Within the East Coast, New England (PADD 1A) gasoline increased by 1.1cts to $4.489 gallon, $1.494 above the same week in 2025.

Central Atlantic (PADD 1B) gasoline prices slipped by 0.7cts to $4.527 gallon last week, $1.416 higher than the same week last year.

Lower Atlantic (PADD 1C) gasoline prices dropped by 5.6cts to $4.120 gallon in the profiled week, $1.207 higher than last year.

Midwest (PADD 2) prices fell by 0.6cts to $4.399 gallon, $1.372 above the same period last year.

Prices at the Gulf Coast (PADD 3) slipped by 0.2cts to $3.951 gallon, $1.165 higher than last year.
Rocky Mountain (PADD 4) gasoline climbed by 21.5cts to $4.587 gallon, $1.456 above year-earlier levels.

West Coast (PADD 5) gasoline prices fell by 0.8cts to $5.605 gallon, $1.318 above the corresponding week last year.

Gasoline prices at West Coast less California declined by 0.3cts to $5.186 gallon, but stood $1.340 higher year-on-year.

EIA: U.S. Diesel Down 4.3cts on Week at $5.596 Gallon

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Tuesday (5/19) that retail diesel prices drifted lower during the week ended May 18, with the national average easing 4.3cts to $5.596 gallon. Compared with the same time last year, diesel nationwide was up $2.06 gallon on average.

East Coast diesel prices fell 4.5cts to $5.42 gallon for the week ended May 18. This PADD 1 region showed a $1.84 gallon increase compared with the same period last year.

New England diesel prices decreased 4.1cts to $5.808 gallon. This PADD 1A region climbed $1.911 versus the same period last year.

The Central Atlantic witnessed a 4.4cts decrease on the week. Prices in the PADD 1B region averaged $5.819 gallon, rising $2.031 compared with the previous year.

Diesel prices in the Lower Atlantic averaged $5.231 gallon. This PADD 1C region reflects a 4.7cts decrease on the week and a $1.762 gallon rise from the same time last year.

In the Midwest, diesel prices fell 6.6cts on the week. The PADD 2 region averaged $5.749 gallon, which was $2.268 gallon higher than levels seen at the same time last year.

On the Gulf Coast, diesel fell 3cts on the week to $5.122 gallon. Compared with the prior year, prices in PADD 3 were up $1.921 gallon.

Rocky Mountain diesel saw a 5.8cts increase on the week to $5.549 gallon. The PADD 4 region posted a $2.037 gallon increase year-over-year.

West Coast diesel prices fell 3.8cts on the week to average $6.524 gallon. Compared with the previous year, the PADD 5 region was up $2.228 gallon.

West Coast less California diesel rose 1.5cts on a weekly basis to $5.92 gallon. This represented a $2.092 gallon increase from the same time last year.

California diesel itself fell 9.9cts on the week to $7.222 gallon. Prices in the state remain the highest in the nation, sitting at $2.387 gallon above levels seen at the same time last year.